ATLANTA — Jasmine Crowe believes stamping out hunger isn't a matter of resources, but more a matter of logistics. In order to strategically address the problem, she started a company to help fill the gaps, Goodr.
"We really sit at the intersection of ending food waste and ending hunger," she told 11Alive's Karys Belger.
Goodr connects directly with companies to get their excess food to people in the community. Crowe especially focuses on putting her resources in places where food pantries are not as accessible.
At a recent pop-up grocery store in Riverdale, G.A., Crowe explained how food deserts were prevalent in the Atlanta-Metro area and often people were kept from accessing food because of transportation.
"If you don’t have a car, and your only recourse is walking and mass transportation, it’s really hard for you to go and get food."
Crowe isn't just handing out canned goods at her pop-up grocery stores. She also tried to incorporate fresh produce.
"We really try to set up almost like a farmer’s market if you will...we got carrots, peppers, tomatoes."
Over the last two years, Crowe mentioned she and her team of "do-gooders" have had to increase their efforts as the need for hunger increased.
"I think one of the things I saw with the whole hunger plight with the pandemic was that people were experiencing hunger that had never been hungry before...we introduced free grocery delivery for families and for seniors who were sheltering in place."
Crowe also emphasized the need to think about hunger year-round. She knows people typically think about hunger during the holidays, but that's not the only time families are in need.
"Just like we need to eat every single day, people need to eat every single day. I wanna try and remind everybody to think about solving hunger and addressing hunger as a year-round thing."
Crowe is already expanding her reach. She's been in talks with the representatives of cities and towns across the country to bring her pop-up grocery stores to other communities as well.